California Girl

"It is. I make this all the time for my brothers. They'd tell me if it wasn't."

"You're a good egg too Marnie."

They ate their breakfast potatoes on the kitchen table. Kelly told Marnie about the art gallery she was managing and Marnie shared stories about the pub. Marnie had to get to class, so she packed up her things.

"Marnie ... thank you." She tried to hand Marnie a hundred dollar bill. Marnie raised her hand.

"No, Kelly ... this was a favor for you. You don't owe me anything."

"I could kiss you ... " Kelly began.

Marnie stepped closer to kiss Kelly. Surprised, Kelly instinctively parted her lips, and their tongues met -- and a flood of warmth enveloped the blonde. She wrapped her arms around Marnie and then heard footsteps. They pulled away from each other.

"Oh ... hi ..." Tasha said, sleepy eyed. "I thought I heard my mom come home."

Although Tasha wasn't awake enough to notice the kiss, Marnie was unsure of what Tasha saw, and made her way to the kitchen door that led to the outside.

"Thanks Marnie," Kelly said, still blushing from the unexpected attention.

Marnie waved, and was gone.

* * *

Marnie couldn't get her stolen kiss out of her mind. She decided to shower before going to bed, and let the water run down her face as she thought about Kelly. Why her? Why was she attracted to older woman? And was Kelly really interested in her? Emily never mentioned that Kelly was bisexual. She couldn't answer those questions, but she again felt weak in the knees and a hunger that betrayed her inner desires. She was washing herself, and her hand lingered on her sex, feeling the slippery folds and the hardened nub they were protecting. Her touch nibbled at the edges of her hunger, and soon she was using two fingers to masturbate under the hot spray.

Images of Kelly again floated through her mind. Kelly was eating her pussy ravenously and fingering her ass. One of Marnie's fingers probed her back channel as she rubbed her overheated cunt.

"Shit!" she called out as an intense orgasm crested and her anus squeezed her finger. Samuel and Emily were sitting in bed reading, when they both heard to explicative come through the wall separating their bedroom from Marnie's bathroom.

"Looks like she's having fun," quipped Samuel. He cupped his wife's breast under her nightgown. "Shouldn't we?"

Samuel's infatuation with Marnie was starting to annoy Emily. "Not tonight big boy." She switched off her reading light and turned on her side away from her husband. He sighed and pulled up the covers.

* * *

Her last class ended in the late afternoon. Her mind was thankfully on her dissertation and not on Kelly. She was making her usual ten minute walk from campus thinking through the completion of her dissertation and her defense of it in front of the most eminent members of the UCLA English department faculty. She figured it would be another four months of hard work to be ready. It was her life goal, and her parent's, to secure her Ph.D. She had sacrificed everything, including Lauren, to achieve it. She reminded herself of why she was in California.

She checked the street side mailbox and carried in a handful of letters and magazines and the daily Amazon package that was stuffed into the too small enclosure. Emily was sitting at the kitchen table, in a simple summer dress, sipping coffee and scrolling through the messages on her phone. She was lost in thought when Marnie handed her the stack of mail. Emily put her phone down and casually flipped through the pile while Marnie poured herself a fresh mug of coffee.

"What's that?" Marnie asked, pointing to an engraved invitation that Emily cast to the "junk" pile.

"It's an invitation to an exhibition opening at Kelly's gallery. Samuel and I have a dinner engagement that night so we can't make it."

Marnie picked up the invitation and looked it over.

"Watercolors on mixed medium ... it sounds interesting."

Emily put down a catalog she was deciding whether to keep and looked directly at Marnie. "Did you want to go? I'm sure Kelly wouldn't mind."

Kelly. Marnie's mental plan for the rest of her academic career was forgotten. Yes. She wanted to see Kelly. She tried to feign only a passing interest. "I don't want to be any trouble."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Trouble? Don't be silly. Let me text her."

It was what she wanted to hear. "OK."

Marnie admired the expensive looking invitation. She ran her fingertips across the raised letters and thought of those fingertips running across the nubby flesh encircling Kelly's long, brown nipples. She felt the fine vellum and wondered if was as soft as her skin. She shuddered as she felt herself getting wet.

Marnie was startled when Emily's phone chimed.

"She said it's fine."

* * *

There was a lot more glamour than Marnie was expecting. A uniformed attendant parked the car she borrowed from Emily. She was offered a glass of French champagne from the temporary bar at the entrance to the gallery. She spotted a raw bar right next to it with a man shucking fresh oysters and arranging them on a big bed of shaved ice as guests plucked them off. A quartet was playing classical music.

Marnie waded into the crowd clutching her glass of champagne. One of the featured artists was demonstrating her painting technique to a group of onlookers crowded around her while the waitstaff passed around trays of hors d'oeuvres. She snagged a potato chip covered with a small dollop of caviar and crème fraiche. She was munching on the chip when she spotted Kelly, holding court next to one of the larger paintings, chatting up the work of art to two of her clients. She saw Marnie and waved, then went back to her conversation.

Kelly looked stunning. Marnie hadn't seen her really dressed up. She was wearing a turquoise silk dress and matching pumps. The elegant dress was fitted and draped in a way that accentuated her already pronounced curves and was slit up the side to show off her long, muscular legs. The color of the dress was dazzling with her matching blue eyes. She finished her conversation with her clients and approached Marnie.

"You look fabulous," Marnie commented.

"Ah, you're Tasha's friend, aren't you?" she said jokingly.

"I'm yours too."

Kelly pulled Marnie aside, away from prying ears.

"I wanted to tell you that it doesn't feel right. To be more than friends," she said in a whisper. Marnie had been on her mind every day since the stolen kiss. Kelly didn't want to say it, but she had the same strong feelings of attraction as Marnie. The age difference, Tasha's friendship with Marnie, and her friendship with Emily, all served to suppress her urge to tell the truth.

"I understand. But I just wanted to let you know how I feel." Marnie put two fingers to her lips.

Kelly wanted to say "I feel the same way," but didn't.

Kelly was an organized person who had put each aspect of her life in a separate compartment. Now she was feeling a physical attraction to a woman closer in age to her daughter, and who was living in her best friend's house. Suddenly life seemed very complicated.

* * *

The reception lasted until 2 a.m., and after the last guest left Kelly closed up the gallery and drove home. The house was dark, as she expected, and she went into her cold king size bed, climbing in on her usual right hand side. The left hand side, Brian's side, still had the decorative pillows on it.

Kelly rested her head on the pillow, eyes on the ceiling. She was physically exhausted, but finally had the time to reflect on what happened at the gallery. Marnie came right out and confessed her attraction. The attempted kiss wasn't a fluke. As she pondered their budding relationship she felt an ache between her legs. Her fingers slid effortlessly inside her, churning a froth as her mind focused on Marnie, and imagined her nude, the white freckled breasts, full and ripe, and the imagined bush of trimmed red hair. Kelly went higher and higher as her fingers worked their magic on her clit. She usually called out Ashley's name when she was going to cum. But this time as she felt the dam break she cried out "Marnie" over and over.

* * *

It'd been two weeks since their encounter in the gallery. Marnie couldn't sit idly by not knowing if there was something real between her and Kelly. She was still gun shy after her traumatic breakup with Lauren, but enough time had passed for her to feel adventurous again. There had been a standing invitation to visit Kelly's pool, and she thought it was time to act instead of stew.

She called, and was surprised that Kelly wasn't at all guarded in inviting her over. Marnie didn't know that Kelly was just waiting for her to make the first move. The appointment was made for the following afternoon.

Kelly looked at her phone when the call ended. "What am I doing?" she asked herself. She realized she was playing with fire to have Marnie over, in a swimsuit no less, but the thought of seeing her again was too compelling to refuse. Her conscience told her that there was only trouble ahead, but her conscience wasn't in charge.

* * *

"I'm so glad that you called."

Kelly opened the door to their impressive modern house to let Marnie in. The redhead was carrying a beach tote, dressed casually in a flowery summer dress. Kelly's mouth went dry, and she suddenly felt flush. It was exactly the feeling she craved ... and feared.

"I'm not used to it being this hot," Marnie said in a fake complaining tone, stepping in from the searing sun to an air conditioned house. It was a bit after lunch, and the temperature was in the low 90's. That would be considered a heat wave in Dalkey, but in Los Angeles it was normal summer weather. Marnie fanned her face with her hand as she entered the house.

"That's why we have swimming pools. Let's get you changed, shall we?" It took a force of will for Kelly to act casual. There were too many nights thinking about what might be.

Marnie followed Kelly to the wing of the house containing the bedrooms. She saw that Kelly was wearing a sheer cover-up over a skin tight one piece suit. There was no mistaking the contours of her shapely body as Marnie watched her hips sway as she walked.

"You can change in Tasha's room. She got a job as a counselor at a day camp and won't be back till after dinner." Kelly pointed down the hallway to an open door on the left. As they got close, Marnie got a whiff of Kelly's perfume. She couldn't place the brand but it had a tropical floral scent. Interesting, she thought, that Kelly would put on perfume before a swim. Was there more than a swim on the agenda?

Marnie went into Tasha's room. She spent some time in it before when she stayed over, talking with her late into the night. She wondered if some twisted way she was taking Tasha's place in Kelly's universe. She was closer in age to Tasha. But she felt the attraction as well, and she was sure that the feeling was mutual.

Marnie felt surprisingly self-conscious putting on her one piece bathing suit. Even though it wasn't particularly revealing, there was no hiding her full figured body in a clingy garment. She was glad that she brought a cover-up that Emily so generously lent her, although it was sheer and in some ways only made her look sexier. She gathered up her clothes, folded them, and put them back in her tote. She went in the adjoining bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. She was pleased at what she saw, but felt compelled to retrieve her purse and brush her hair and fix her make-up one last time. Finally satisfied, she left the room in search of Kelly.

She wasn't difficult to find. Kelly was fixing a pitcher of Bloody Marys in the kitchen. She was standing there in a white one piece. It was her favorite suit for swimming laps and left nothing to the imagination. As Marnie came up behind her she couldn't help but notice the powerfully built shoulders, the muscle mass built up by swimming butterfly on the Pepperdine club team and also playing club water polo. Looking lower, she saw the curve out to a substantial but well-toned booty and muscular thighs. Even at age forty, she looked like she could still swim competitively.

"Oh," she uttered at seeing Marnie in a bathing suit. Her knees suddenly felt weak and her mouth was as dry as a desert. "I guess you're ready." Kelly felt the urge to sit down and cross her legs, the instant attraction fierce. She gathered her wits and carried the pitcher to the kitchen table, pouring equal portions into two tall insulated plastic glasses.

"Something I came up with. I like to drink these by the pool." She stirred a celery stick in the glass and held it out for Marnie. "Try it."

Marnie took the cool glass and slurped some of the alcohol infused tomato juice. It was surprisingly good. Her face showed her unexpected approval and a warm glow went into her belly.

"Like it?" asked Kelly. "It's my Dad's recipe. He claims it's the secret ingredient."

"What is it?" Marnie asked. Her Bloody Mary was better than most that she tried.

"Spicy mustard. I added a dash of Grey Poupon. A little extra heat and the vinegar gives it a good kick."

Marnie took a crunch out of the celery stick. "I like it."

"There's plenty more from where that came from."

Marnie nodded her head and took another sip. "It's delicious. I'll remember that ... a spicy mustard."

They sat at the kitchen table to finish their drinks. The small talk and the alcohol calmed Kelly's case of nerves. She wondered how a woman almost her daughter's age could have such a profound effect on her.

"It's a beautiful house Kelly. It seems like all of Emily's friends live in beautiful homes."

"The California dream, I guess," mused Kelly, though she didn't feel like she was really living it.

"So Emily's been keeping me up to date. If you don't mind me asking, how has it been since Brian moved out?"

"Really nice, actually. I'm getting along better with Tasha and I think my blood pressure dropped twenty points. I thought we were doing everyone a favor by staying together but that clearly was a mistake."

"I've made a few too."

Kelly didn't say anything, hoping Marnie would continue. She did.

"I think you heard about Lauren."

"Only what I've heard from Emily."

"What did she tell you?"

"That she was an English professor at Trinity University. She was your faculty advisor for your doctorate candidacy. Uhh ... she was from Boston ... I think she had kids ..."

"Two."

"Two kids, and she was there on some sort of exchange program. Divorced. Did I get that right?"

"Yes ... that's pretty much right. We fell in love. And we got into trouble."

"The administration find out?"

"Exactly. A snoopy professor got into Lauren's phone, saw a nude photo of me, and immediately went to the head of the department, a predator named Pamela Wentworth."

"Shit."

"Exactly. Wentworth took advantage of me."

Kelly paused. She hadn't heard about any sexual abuse.

"I'm sorry Marnie."

"It was only through a little bit of detective work and some luck that I got out of it. We found out that Wentworth had abused a number of other students. She was fired."

"Amazing. So what did happen with Lauren if you don't mind me asking."

"I don't mind telling you. Lauren and I figured we wouldn't be able to respect an artificial boundary between us. I think we needed 5,000 miles between us, and that brought me to Los Angeles."

"There was no other choice?"

"Not really. Lauren had to finish out her contract at Trinity or she'd lose her job when she went back to Boston. It would have been complicated for her to stay in Ireland, so at some point she was going to have to go back to Boston. She had two small children two children to think of. She said her ex would never have never agreed to let her move the kids to Ireland." Marnie felt relieved to let the story out. The only other person she had told was Emily, and she swore her to secrecy.

"How much time was left on her contract?"

"A year ... and that would have meant me either taking a year off of school and waiting for Lauren to leave or transferring to another school so I could finish my PhD. I've been waiting my whole life to get this degree. I'd be the first in my family to earn a doctorate. I didn't want to take a year off, and then be faced with moving to Boston to follow Lauren. It was a tough decision, but we both thought it best to call it off."

"You're a brave girl Marnie. I admire your strength in getting past the death of your parents and the break up of a relationship. If you had it to do over, would you make the same decision to move halfway across the world to Los Angeles?"

"An unqualified yes. I've thought about it a lot. I loved Lauren but I'm a good way to getting over it. I absolutely love Los Angeles and getting to know Emily ... and you." She didn't say that she really wasn't getting over it, as she didn't even admit it to herself.

Marnie held up her Bloody Mary to toast her courage. They clinked glasses, and Kelly, unable to contain her efficiency, noticed Marnie's glass was empty and got up to refill it.

She came back, holding a fresh glass of her trademark drink, with two and a half shots of vodka. She stirred the drink with a long stalk of celery and handed it to Marnie.

"These are good on a hot day."

They stood there silently, each sipping a fresh drink and contemplating the course of events to follow -- would it be an innocent swim, or would it be something more?

Kelly punctured the tension of the moment, giving Marnie a quick slap on her bottom, like she would have given a teammate on the swim team. "Ready to get wet?"

The sting took Marnie by surprise. It was intended to. Kelly's inhibitions were again lowered and her lust for Marnie became obvious.

Kelly took three long strides toward the deep end of the pool and arched gracefully into the water after a running jump.

Marnie watched the absolutely gorgeous creature bound across the pool deck and fly into the pool.

The blonde shunned a swim cap, and her brassy blonde hair exploded with droplets of water as she swam, shoulders rippling, performing the butterfly stroke across the pool, doing a flip turn, and then a full lap back. Marnie had never seen such a skillful swimmer and seeing Kelly rip across the water was a compelling display of grace and power. After finishing her two laps, she flipped over on her back and casually paddled to the shallow end to climb out of the pool.

Marnie couldn't help but stare at Kelly when she exited the pool. Her body glistened in the sun, and water dripped off her tanned skin and body hugging suit. Her nipples were poking out of the tight fitting material. Marnie felt a wetness between her legs.

Kelly spotted Marnie when she stood up. Marnie was sitting on her chaise lounge with her eyes fixed on Kelly's breasts. Kelly was a 36E, so she knew when someone was staring at her breasts. Kelly shuddered at the unexpected attention and her latent feelings for other women became front and center.

The interchange after Kelly's quick dip was awkward.

"Come on in," Kelly exhorted to her new friend.

"Maybe in a bit," said Marnie, staying put. She considered herself no better than an average swimmer. She felt intimidated by seeing Kelly's professional stroke.

Kelly realized her error. She usually warmed up with a few laps of butterfly, but she could understand how she was a tough act to follow. She walked over to Marnie and pulled her by the hand to a standing position.

"Look, I know I'm a better than average swimmer. I wasn't trying to show off. It was almost twenty years ago, but old habits die hard. Come on ..."

They put their drinks by the edge of the pool and waded into the shallow end. Kelly gave Marnie a pool noodle to float with and she put her head back and floated on her back, easing into a lazy backstroke. Marnie relaxed in the warm water under the hot sun. Marnie couldn't help but watch Kelly effortlessly cutting through the water.